Ice adhesion breaker for aeroplanes



Dec. 15, 1931. L. P. BARLOW ICE ADHESION BREAKER FOR AEROPLANES FiledSept. 23, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet l Dec. 15, 1931. L. P. BARLOW ICE ADHESIONBREAKER FOR AERO PLANES Filed Sept. 23, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IHHlHHId lll I l I I lllllnl w H Rvefl leLsZerfjarZozg 1 Q, I r L NW Q mm m r PUPatented Dec. 15, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE warm P. BAR-LOW, OFDETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR TO mcoo-an RADIATOR & EI'G.

60., O1 DETROIT, MICHIGAN, A COBIOELTION' 0F MAINE IC'E ADHESION BREAKERFOB AEROPLANES Application filed September 28, 1927. Serial No. 221,482.

This invention relates to aeroplanes, and more particularly to meanswhereby the lifting and control surfaces of the plane may be quickly andreadily heated whenever deslred to break the adhesion of any ice whichmay form or collect thereon, and thus free such surfaces of thisparasite. load by allowing it to fall free of the plane.

One object of my invention is to utilize the heat of the motordissipated through the cool ing system in the form of steamfor heatingsuch surfaces, and control the distribution of the steam to saidsurfaces at the will of the aviator.

A further object of my invention is to con- .trol the distribution ofsteam to these various surfaces through the medium of a valve, by meansof which the steam may be transferred from one surface to the other, andthus require merelyenough heat to break the ice adhesions, and not tomaintain any of the surfaces constantly heated above the freezingtemperature. It is my intention not to prevent the forming of ice uponthe surfaces of the plane, but to break the adhesions of the ice afterit has formed so that it may fall free of the plane. In this way only arelatively small amount of heat is required, mak ing available theutilization of the steam generated in the cooling system of the motor.

It is a further object of my invention to provide tubular hinges for themovable control surfaces of the plane, and to pass steam through thesetubular hinges whenever desired to break the adhesions of any icethereon, and thus keep the hinge connections free.

Another object of my invention is to provide means for returning thecondensate from the heated surfaces to the cooling system of the motor.

My invention consists further in the matters hereinafter described and.claimed.

In the accompanying drawings-- Fig. 1 is a front view of,,an aeroplaneequipped with the improvements'of my invention, the wing of the planebeing shown in section on line 11 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is a side view of the plane taken on line 2 2 of Fig. 1 andillustrating in diagram the various conduits and connections of myinvention;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view'of the wing of the plane and showing theailerons;

Flg. 4 is an enlarged vertical sectional view through the distributingvalve;.

Fig. 5 is a similar sectional view through said valve taken on line 5-5of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a plan view through the tubular hmFge at one of the ailerons;and

1g. 7 is a plan view'showing the rudder end of the machine.

In the drawings, I have shown m heating system applied to an aeroplaneof t e monoplane type having a cantilever win 1 extendin across the bodyor fuselage 2 o the plane ad acent its forward end and braced onopposite sides of the body by struts 3,.3, as usual in suchconstructions. he propelling motor of the plane is mounted at the frontend of the body 2 and has a propeller 4, as in these designs. At therear or tail end of the bod are the usual horizontal and vertical stabiizers 5, 6, elevators 7, and rudder 8. The main wing 1 is providedwith'the usual ailerons 9, 9

atthe opposite ends of the wing on the rear side thereof, as shown inFig. 3. The propelling motor is equipped with a steam cooling system ofany preferred design. This system includes a steam dome 10 arranged 1above the cylinders 11, 11 of the motor and suitably connected with thewater jackets of the cylinders by conduits 12,12, as shown in Figs. 1and 2. I

The wing 1 and the control members 5 to 9' are all made hollow, and, inaccordance with my invention, steam from the cooling system of the motormay, at the will of the aviator, be let into these hollow members forheating the inner surfaces of the same and thus free said members of anyice that may form or collect on the outer surfaces thereof by breakingthe adhesion of the ice with said members and thus permit the ice todrop or slide off the same. One way to accomplish this result is shownin the drawings. A pipe 13 connects the dome 10 with a control anddistributing valve 14, which may be of the turning plug type. The plug15 of this valve has an L shaped passage 16 therein leading from thecenter of one end of the valve to a its cylindrical periphery, as shownin Fig. 4. The pipe 13 is in constant communication with thls passage 16at the end of the plug, while the other end of the passage, in theturning of the plug, may be brought into registration with any one of anumber of ports which are provided in the casing of the valve about thecylindrical periphery of the plug, as shown in Fig. 5. The plug isturned through the medium of a shaft 17 which extends back to withinreach of the aviator in the cockpit of the plane, and there has a crankhandle 18, by means of which the shaft may be turned. In Fig. 5, theports just referred to are marked 19, 20, 21, 22, and 23. Ports 19 and22 are connected by short pipe sections 24, 25 with portions of the wing-1 on opposite sides of the valve 14, the latter being preferablylocated in the wing and approximately midway between the ends of thesame. The wing 1 is divided internally into substantially half sectionsby partitions 26, 26, which are vertically arranged on opposite sides ofthe valve. The pipe sections 24, 25 extend through these partitions andopen into their associated wing sections. Port 20 is connected with theailerons 9 by a pipe 27 and its branches 28, 28, as shown in Fig. 3.-

Each aileron is flexibly connected to the main body of the wing 1through the medium of a tubular hinge, as shown in Fig. 6. This hingecomprises a tubular axis member 29 which is fixed by brackets 30,- 30 totheadjacent portion of the wing along the inner edge of the aileron. Theaileron has hinge members 31, 31 which are rotatably mounted on the axismember 29 between the brackets 30, as shown.. The pipe 28 is coupled tothe tubular axis members 29 at the ailerons and serves as steamconveyors therefor. The axis member 29 is preferably held stationary andhas-its outer end connected with the hollow interior of the aileron byan elbow 32. The latter is connected by a suitably packed union 32whereby the elbow may turn with the aileron about the pipe 29 in theoperation thereof. Port 21 of the valve 14 has a conduit connection 33with the several control members 5 to 8, as shown in Fig. 2.

Port 23 is connected by pipes 34 with the half-sections of the wing 1,as shown in Fig. 1. Under ordinary flying conditions the valve plug 15is turned to a position with its passage 16 in registration with port23, so that both sections of the wing will receive steam simultaneouslyfrom the cooling system of the motor and thus serve as the condensertherefor. The condensate from the wing sections drains into a tank 35which is suitably supported beneath the body of the plane, as shown inFigs. 1 and 2. The tank 35 is connected with thewing sections byconduits 36, 36 which extend upward along and are supported by thestruts 3, 3 and have po1nt on A branches 37, 37 at their upper ends,which open into the associated wing sections at condensate' collected inthe tank will be returned to the jackets. The tank 35 is preferablystreamline, so as to offer low head resistance in the flight oftheplane.

The vertical stabilizer 6 is connected with both horizontal stabilizers5 by conduits 40 so that the vertical stabilizer may drain into thehorizontal ones. The latter are connected by conduit 41 with the tank 35so that the condensate from all the stabilizers may drain to the tank.The elevators 7 and the rudder 8 and the ailerons 9 are not connectedwith the tank 35 but have vents 42 to the atmosphere. The elevators 7are flexibly connected with their respective stabilizers 5 by hollowhinges similar to that heretofore described for the ailerons 9, and thesame type of hollow hinge is employed for flexibly connecting the rudder8 to the vertical stabilizer 6 and the adjacent tail portion of the bodyof the plane, so that steam may be supplied to these movable controlmembers. By conveying steam to these members through hollow hinges, thelatter will also be heated to break the adhesions of ice thereon andprevent freezing up of the hinges.

If duringa flight the pilot notices ice forming or collecting on any ofthe lifting or control surfaces of the plane, he can quickly turn thevalve plug 15 into position to supply steam to the particular surfaceson which it has formed. The steam vapors will heat the inner sides ofthese surfaces and break the adhesions of the ice on their outer sidesand thiis permit the ice to drop from the plane and not cause it todescend by adding a para site load, as heretofore. With respect to thosemembers which are connected with the tank 35, the condensed steam willdrain to the tank and the condensate be returned to the cooling system,as heretofore described. The valve plug 15 may be turned from one portto the other so as to free the various surfaces of ice and then bereturned to the port 23 so that the full wing surfaces may be employedas a condenser for the cooling system of the motor.

The details of structure and arrangement of parts shown'and describedmay be variously changed and modified without departing from the spiritand scope of my invention.

I claim as my invention:

' 1. In an aeroplane, a propelling motor.

therefor, a steam cooling system for the m0- tor, a movable controlmember for the plane, a hollow hinge connecting the control member tothe adjacent part of the plane, and

. means connecting the hollow hinge with the cooling system wherebysteam may be supplied to the hollow hinge for heating the same to breakthe adhesion of any ice which may form or collect thereon.

2. The combination with an airplane including a wing member havingpassageway chambers therein, of hollow ailerons associated with saidchambers for the delivery of heating medium therethrough, and anapertured hinge member connecting said ailerons with said chambers.

3. In an aeroplane, an internal combustion propelling engine fortheplane, a steam coolmg system for the engine having a steam collectingchamber, hollow wing and hollow movable control members for the plane,hollow hinge means for the hollow control members, conduit meansconnecting the chamber with the hollow win and hollow control membersthrough the ollow hinge means therefor for supplying steam to saidmembers to heat'the same to prevent the accumulation of ice thereon, andvalve means in the conduit means for controlling the sup ply of steamfrom the chamber to the hollow wing and control members.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

LESTER P. BARLOW.

